Attorney
General Jack Conway, Gov. Steve Beshear, First Lady Jane Beshear and members of
the Substance Abuse Treatment Advisory Committee are reminding community groups
and treatment providers that submissions are currently being accepted for $19
million in juvenile substance abuse treatment grants through the KY Kids
Recovery program.The deadline for
submissions is March 31, 2014.

The
grants will fund comprehensive juvenile substance abuse
treatment programs, both expanding treatment beds at existing facilities and
creating new juvenile treatment programs with the full continuum of care,
including intensive outpatient and follow-up care centers.

“Far too many parents have been forced to wait at
least 90 days to get their children help or they’ve had to drive four hours
away from home to find a treatment bed,” said General Conway, who chairs the
Substance Abuse Treatment Advisory Committee.“The goal of our committee is to maximize these grants to fund
public-private partnerships that will result in expanded treatment for teens in
every region of Kentucky.”

Kentucky
only has about one-tenth of the treatment beds it needs, and according to the
most recent report from the Substance Abuse Health and Mental Services
Administration, one in eight Kentucky high school students meet the criteria
for a substance abuse disorder.

“This expansion of treatment availability continues our work to provide a
multi-level strategy to fight addiction – a strategy that includes law
enforcement, community leaders, and health care providers,” said Gov. Beshear.“For thousands of Kentuckians, this expansion
will offer an opportunity to restore their health and return to productive
lives.”

The
Substance Abuse Advisory Committee will review the submissions and invite the
best responses to submit a second formal proposal.The committee’s request for information (RFI)
may be found by visiting this link http://goo.gl/q7Q4wM.

“The
need for treatment is so vast, which is why we need innovative partners to make
this expansion of treatment a reality,” said Mrs. Beshear.“I have every confidence that we will find
the partners we need to give Kentuckians a fighting chance to leave addiction
behind.”

Existing
providers, new providers, community partnerships and non-profits may apply for
KY Kids Recovery grants.For more
information about the program and qualifications visit www.kykidsrecovery.ky.gov.

Substance Abuse Advisory
Committee

Gov.
Beshear created the Substance Abuse Treatment Advisory Committee by executive
order to oversee the distribution of the settlement funds and the KY Kids
Recovery grant program.

In
addition to Attorney General Conway and First Lady Jane Beshear, committee
members include: Cabinet for Health and Family
Services Secretary Audrey Tayse Haynes, Justice and Public Safety Secretary J.
Michael Brown, Kentucky Office of Drug Control Policy Director Van Ingram,
Kentucky Housing Corporation Executive Director/CEO J. Kathryn Peters and Dr.
Allen Brenzel, Clinical Director of the Department for Behavioral Health,
Developmental and Intellectual Disabilities.Rep. Jimmy Lee serves as an ex-officio member of the committee.

History of KY
Kids Recovery Grants

The
KY Kids Recovery grants were created after Attorney General Conway settled
cases against two pharmaceutical companies for $32 million.The court
orders filed in both settlements require that the funds be spent on drug
treatment programs.

In
addition to the $19 million in KY Kids Recovery grants, the settlement is
providing

$500,
000 to complete construction of a Recovery Kentucky center in Ashland, $2.5
million for almost 900 scholarships over two years to Recovery Kentucky
centers, and $560,000 to create 14
drug-free homes for people completing and transitioning out of residential
substance abuse treatment programs.

The following entities will also receive funds over
the next two years from the settlement: